And so it came to pass that I woke at 6am, and at 6:45am got into a car with a strange man and drove to Standish.
There, at Mark's house we had bacon butties and were on the road to Windermere.
We arrived a little after 9am, put our hiking boots on and we were off. Jesus Christ. The first 2.8 miles took us over two hours. It was like walking up really steep, uneven stairs for ever. I wanted to die. It felt like my head and chest were going to explode, and I wasn't the only one. Sweat was pouring off most of us.
After that the route evened out a bit, although it was still a little steep, and we got to the middle of the horseshoe at about 1pm, where we stopped for lunch. And nearly froze to death. The wind had picked up and it was cold. Very, very cold.
After that it was all downhill from there. Literally. It was all downhill. Except for the occasional mild ascent, a load of mud, and some boggy squelchy stuff.
All tolled we were back at the car at about 4:30pm having covered a distance of about 12 miles as the crow flies, and 18 miles accounting for the mental ascents.
I'm too tired to type a blow-by-blow account, my knees are battered, and I can't really focus properly. Walking to work tomorrow will not be an option.
Penny update: She's still not cut a tooth, which is ridiculous. She kicked off today, screamed, wouldn't take her food, which is really unlike her. She's awake now, which is also unlike her, but I think she's heard my voice and wanted to say hello. Unfortunately I'm too sweaty and muddy to give her a snuggle.
Time, I think for a nice long bath, followed by a very early night.
Thanks again to everyone who sponsored me, in total it looks like we're going to raise nearly £1000. Photos are being posted to Facebook as we speak.
See you tomorrow, if I can get out of bed.
